PJ Medcast

PJ MEDCAST are the podcasts for PJ MED (Pararescue Medicine). Besides PJs, these podcasts may be useful to other Military, Law Enforcement and Civilian Medical Personnel involved in Tactical and Technical Rescue Medicine, and other facets of Operational Medicine.
PJs may document the time they spend listening to podcasts as training for their training folders, and also apply towards Paramedic Recertification.
This podcast represents the positions of the authors and may not represent the offical position of the Department of the Defense or the United States Government.

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The TCCC Committee has made new changes to the management of suspected tension pneumothorax. They created a great paper on all of the aspects of this regarding diagnosis. management and controversial issues.

This is Part 1.

Regards from SOMSA. Thanks to many folks for coming up and saying hello. More feedback comes in on the value of this podcast to our amazing Operational Medics around the globe- Be safe.

I review a few things we stressed on base this week that are helpful getting through these difficult times to deal with those close to us who are suffering and to help you get through these challenging tragedies.

The 2 Vs- ventilate and validate. Go thru the different phases of grief.

Our good friend Dr Mazzoli created a publication from the vision center for excellence. OCS (orbital compartment syndrome) can result from trauma to the head, face and orbit, resulting in increased pressure behind the eye threatening the retina and optic nerve. This is a potentially preventible cause of blindness. This podcast discusses what OCS is. You need to learn it on a specimen. It is relatively straightforward. You can look for it on youtube. The document will go out in the next Med newsletter and can also be found on PJ med.com

Please send donations to pararescuefoundation.org to help defray costs of the winter retreat.

This episode discusses historical aspects of aeromedical evacuation and goes into some detail of the three platforms operating out of helmand province in OEF. These were Army Dustoff, Air Force Rescue (PEDRO) and the British MERT platforms.

The information is from a Journal of Trauma paper discussing the way forward for FAME ( forward aeromedical evacuation).

In part 2 of this discussion regarding the value of psychological skills training, we continue the discussion of BTSF, Beat The Stress Fool. We discuss the process and evidence supporting self Talk (instructional and motivational), visualization (See), and the use of a Focus word ( a go word, or trigger).

Have a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah and Happy New Year. Please consider a donation to the Pararescue Foundation in your end of year giving.

In part 1 of psychological skills training we introduce the concept and discuss tactical breathing. This article by med student and prior PJ Mike Lauria is in the Annals of Emergency Medicine Dec 2017. Vol 70 Issue 6, p 884.

The research supporting this is presented and discussed in the context of special operations and emergency medicine resuscitations.

Send money to the PJ Foundation to support the winter retreat for operators.

The I-gel has a series of benefits that make it attractive as an extra glottic airway (EGA). This podcast reviews the paper that will be in the Journal of Special Operations Medicine and discusses the role of EGAs in the pre-hospital environment and why the I-gel is preferred.

PJs- pls send a check to the Pararescue Foundation and do a fundraiser once a year. Chief (RET) Jones is expanding the services and needs your support.

Doc Menon is an AF Flight Surgeon with prior OEF deployments with Moffet, and a NASA Crew Surgeon. He discusses his background with experience on Mt Everest and in Haiti after the earthquake, and how they impact how he thinks about care in Space and other low resource, austere environments.

He then gives us an overview of what happens to humans in space from a medical and physiological perspective, as well as what PJs should expect when you pull an Astronaut out of the capsule.

Finally, we get a brief operational overview of the coming space mission.

This concise discussion contains good intel for SA for the Space Recovery Mission.

Look into the Pararescue Foundation for the March winter retreat and ski tour for Operators in need of decompression and reconstitution.

Mike Lauria is a Med student, prior STS PJ turned Flight Medic. He discusses his experiences as they would be relevant to special needs populations during disaster response and his transition to becoming a Flight Medic which is another great career option if you want to stay operational.

Look into Kyle Faudree's training if you are interested in becoming a flight medic at www.iamed.us

On this September 11 we remember our fallen and honor our police, fire and EMS first responders, and Nation's warriors.

Keep our PJs and others operating right now in response to Hurricane Irma.

Doc Fedor is a civilian Emergency Medicine and EMS Doc who is the Director of the Schoolhouse Paramedic Program. He discusses rapid sequence airway. A technique unique and specific to pre-hospital medicine in which the patient receives a sedative and paralytic, and a supra-glottic device is intentionally placed.